Archive for July, 2008

Many people choose to refinance…

…their HELOC, or home equity line of credit into a first mortgage with a fixed rate. Your mortgage professional can also arrange to open a new heloc behind the new first mortgage. This allows you to pay your existing debt at a fixed rate while maintaining the convenience of having an available HELOC.

If you are considering refinancing…

…take a moment to review your goals for a refinance. Are you looking to consolidate debt, lower your current mortgage rate, shorten your term or make home improvements? How long do you plan on keeping your home? Share this information with your mortgage professional to find the best program for you.

If you are like many home…

…owners who have variable rate HELOCS then you are watching your interest rate slowly climb along with your payment as the prime rate continues to rise. If you have a very small balance on your HELOC you do not have much to worry about, but if you have a larger balance you may want to […]

When refinancing, keep in mind…

…the mortgage market is highly volatile. Brokers and Lenders reset their prices every morning, and sometimes during the day. Unless price quotations from different loan providers are obtained at about the same point in time, they are not comparable.

The costs of a mortgage…

…refinance include a) Origination costs - points and other settlement costs, on the new mortgage only; b) Monthly payments of principal and interest, on both mortgages; and c) Lost interest on (a) and (b), also on both mortgages. Cost offsets on both mortgages are tax savings, and reduction in the loan balance.

In some isolated instances…

…you may qualify for FHA or Fannie Mae type financing if you have decent equity and a good 12 month mortgage history. Sometimes, Fannie Mae will approve a loan through there automated system even if there are some recent mortgage lates and a low credit score.

If you are over 62 and…

…have equity in your home you may qualify for a reverse mortgage. Reverse mortgages do not look at income or credit and can be a solution for borrowers with credit under 500.

Qualifying for a Mortgage…

…Refinance depends on a variety of factors, including your credit score, whether or not you’ve made any late payments on your current mortgage, and how much equity you have in your current property.

If your credit score is…

…under 500 and you are wanting/needing to refinance you may want to consider working with a credit repair company to improve your credit scores so that you are able to refinance for a better rate. A credit repair company can sometimes improve your score enough to help you qualify for a refinance within as little […]

Many people refinance their mortgages in…

…order to consolidate debt into one low monthly payment. By consolidating credit card debt and various other debt you will see various benefits. Some of these benefits are: one low monthly payment (versus several smaller bills to pay each month), lower interest rate, possibly tax benefits (ability to write off mortgage interest and gain that […]

Another option is Freddie Mac….

…DU and AU systems are typically driven by payment history and liquid assets (typically 6+ months is good).

Homeowners who are currently in…

…adjustable rate mortgages can benefit tremendously by refinancing their ARM mortgage to a fixed rate.

Hard money lenders look at…

…the value of the property and the loan amount. With loan to value ratios of 70% or less, hard money lenders can be a viable option to refinance as they do not look at credit for qualification.

Refinancing may be undertaken to…

…reduce interest costs (by refinancing at a lower rate), to pay off other debts, to reduce ones periodic payment obligations (sometimes by taking a longer-term loan), to reduce risk (such as by refinancing from a variable-rate to a fixed-rate loan), and/or to liquidate some or all of the equity that has accumulated in real property […]

If you are in need of…

…refinancing and your credit score is under 500 then you have very limited options. The vast majority of home owners who end up refinancing with a credit score under 500 use hard money lenders. Hard money lenders are equity driven and pay no attention to a credit score under 500 when refinancing.

These types of loans can…

…give you the chance to clean up your credit and give you the leverage needed to avoid bankruptcy. They also provide the opportunity to pay off back child support, late payments, and supply the cash needed for home improvements.

The loans are usually 2-3…

…year adjustable rate mortgage to keep the payments at a reasonable amount. The rationale behind this is to refinance you in 2-3 years to get you into a better situation.

While buying a home…

…when you have bad or below average credit scores may not give you the lowest rates available, it can still be a better alternative than throwing your money away on rent. Here are a few tips to help lower your monthly mortgage payment. * buy a less expensive home (instead of that 200k home, try […]

In many cases, lenders…

…will waive the pre pay penalty if the borrower will accept a slightly higher interest rate.

You can still buy a house…

…with Bad Credit if you can come up with an acceptable down payment or qualify for one of the many Fannie mae,freddie Mac or government programs.

The pre pay penalty that…

…may be assigned to your loan is a protection to the lending institution. In addition to the higher interest rate and fees, the lender assigns a pre pay penalty on the loan to ensure they make a return on their investment. The pre pay penalty can be bought out usually with a fee.

There are government insured programs…

…that help credit challenged borrowers. These programs place less emphasis on the credit score but do care about your credit history. Do no cancel those old credit cards just yet, wait until after you close on your home before doing that.

FHA loans are often the…

…best bet when you are working on repairing your credit. There is no credit score minimum and typically 1 year of current credit will suffice.

Poor Credit Loans come…

…with higher interest rates and usually always come with a 2 or 3 yr pre payment penalty.

If you have bad credit…

…but still want to buy a house, you have options that can range from getting a co-signor to repairing your credit. You now have more choices than were formerly available to people with financial problems.

Do not stay in a poor…

…credit loan for a long period of time. As time goes by, with better repayment behavior, you can refinance into a loan with better terms in a relatively short amount of time. Contact a mortgage professional every 6 months to have him/her evaluate your credit scores and your current mortgage situation.

People with poor credit…

…should typically try and finance their outstanding debt through their loan. Consolidating credit cards and high interest loans will not only lower their overall monthly payments, but by reducing credit balances it will also help improve their credit scores.

If you are considering…

…buying a new home and are concerned about your bad credit there are still options available for you as a first time home buyer. The recent cutbacks in sub prime lending has left many homeowners and potential homeowners wondering if mortgage financing will still be available when they need it.

Credit can always be improved…

…upon in time. Try picking up a secured credit card to begin rebuilding your credit safely.

Lenders make a clear distinction…

…between Poor Credit profile and No Credit profile. No Credit merely means the borrower has not had a history of using credit. A person with Poor Credit/Bad Credit profile has demonstrated a pattern of mishandling credit.